parasocial relationships

• one sided and unreciprocated relationships, usually with a celebrity. the fan expends a lot of emotional energy, commitment and time on the celebrity
• how they can be measured

  McCutcheon made a questionnaire called the celebrity attitude scale
• celebrity attitude scale 


  all q's consist of a statement with a 5 point scale of agreement

  this was used in a large scale study by Maltby et al. which they identified 3 levels of Parasocial relationships. each level describes the attitude and behaviours of the person. the levels increase in severity and people can move up the stages
• level 1 - entertainment social 


  least intense level, celebrities are viewed as sources of entertainment and a fuel for social interaction
• level 2 - intense personal 


  intermediate level

  reflects a greater personal involvement in a parasocial relationship with a celebrity

  like having frequent obsessive thoughts and intense feelings about a celebrity
• level 3 - borderline pathological 


  strongest level, uncontrollable fantasises and extreme behaviours

  like spending lots of money on a celebrity related object

  at this stage celebrity worship can be seen as having got out of hand
• the absorption-addiction model


  People pursue parasocial relationships due to deficits within their own life. ​For example they may have a weak sense of self-identity​,a lack of fulfilment in their everyday relationships ​,or poor psychological adjustment​.may be triggered by a personal crisis or a stressful life event. ​This model therefore predicts an association between poorer psychological health and strength/level of parasocial relationships.  ​
• absorption 


  seeking fulfilment in celebrity worship motivates the individual to focus their attention on the celebrity and become pre-occupied with them and identify with the individual.
• addiction 


  just as with addiction to a psychoactive substance, the individual needs to sustain their commitment to the celebrity by feeling stronger and closer involvement. ​This may lead to more extreme behaviours and delusional thinking
• attachment theory 


  The tendency to form parasocial relationships originates in early childhood relationships between children and their primary caregivers. ​The continuity hypothesis argues that these early relationships continue to influence us later in life. ​The theory argues that those with Insecure-resistant attachment types as adults are more likely to become strongly attached to celebrities than those with secure attachment types. ​